Dancing With Family

Usually I write about interesting people and their connection to a specific and special place in Israel. This is a bit different. There is an interesting person at the center of this story; but instead of leading to a certain location, it takes us to Am Yisrael – the Jewish, Israeli people who are this country. 

If you live in Israel, you’ve most likely heard of the popular television reality show, Born To Dance (Nolad Lirkod). One of this year’s competitors is a new immigrant (olah hadasha) from Canada by way of Illinois, USA. Lisa Oberman had heard a great deal about Israel growing up in Thronhill, a mostly Jewish community outside of Toronto.

Although, her parents began making annual trips to Israel after her father took over Novopharm, a subsidiary of Teva, in Toronto, Lisa’s ballet training schedule never allowed her to join them. Her first opportunity to visit was with the Birthright program.

  “I fell in love with Israel on that trip in 2006. I was overwhelmed by the warmth of the people, how welcoming and friendly everyone was, how  such a natural part of life here. I knew then that this was where I would live. During the trip, I asked about ballet companies because I was a professional ballet dancer. I told the people in charge of our group that they would see me back here. But I also knew I wasn’t read then for such a big step.”

Lisa’s ballet career was her priority at that point. In fact, dancing had been the center of her life since she was 5 years old. She specialized in all forms of dance but at age 10 began to focus on ballet when she was taken on by ballet mentor, Tatiana Stepanova. Tatiana trained and guided Lisa to win the accolade of Teen Dancer in America at age 14. From there the only way for her dance career to grow was to pursue a serious track in ballet. On Tatiana’s advice, Lisa auditioned for and was accepted to the prestigious Kirov Academy in Washington, DC. Leaving Canada to live in the USA proved difficult.

At age 15 Lisa felt overwhelmed by the cattiness and backstabbing that defined the competitive nature of her fellow dancers. The school did nothing to neutralize the tensions. After a year and a half, she decided to return to Toronto to complete her High School degree.

“I had been in a French Immersion school. My parents had originally put my older sister and brother in a Hebrew day school. But when my brother came home from kindergarten and began checking to see if the meat in the fridge was kosher, my father said ‘that’s it’. They wanted us to be in some kind of language school so French was the other option. By the time I came around, it was just taken for granted that that is where I’d study. But it worked out well for me since ballet is all done in French.

“Once I had my degree, I sent out audition tapes to ballet companies in the USA since there isn’t really anything for ballet dancers in Canada. I was accepted by the USA Ballet based in Illinois. Before joining the ballet company, I was able to do the Birthright trip during their summer break. I returned from Israel, went to Illinois and found myself right back in the malicious, spiteful, competitive world I had left in Washington DC. The dancing was fantastic. But on a personal level it was a difficult atmosphere and there was nothing of my Jewish culture. Spending Yom Kippur like that was too much.

“After a year, I just couldn’t do it anymore. So I sent out audition tapes to Israel and Europe. I was accepted by a professional ballet company in Israel. My parents were very supportive. They knew Canada wasn’t an option and they preferred that I be here rather than Illinois or some non-Jewish community in Europe. But I still wasn’t sure I was ready to make the big step so I told the ballet company I’d join on a trial basis. I came to Israel in April of ’06 not really sure what I would find. It was amazing. Like dancers from another world – considerate, kind, not catty in any way. They were more like family than competitive dancers.

“Artistically it was wonderful because I was trained in Russian Ballet and that is what they were doing here. Personally it was like a kind of a fairy tail. Before  coming to Israel, I worked in Toronto to make some money since dancing doesn’t pay very well at all. I met this guy and right away fell for him. Mike is half Canadian and half Israeli. We started dating and finally I had to tell him I would be going to Israel in a couple of weeks. I couldn’t believe it. He said he was also going to Israel – to study at the Interdisciplinary Center in Herztlya. So when I arrived here, my boyfriend picked me up at the airport! It was a wonderful way to start.

“But I didn’t have any chance to speak Hebrew. Either I was with Mike’s friends who spoke English, dancing which is all done in French or not understanding the other ballet dancers who often spoke to each other in Russian. My first real exposure to Hebrew was the T.V. show (Nolad Lirkod). I found out about it from this guy who had been working with the ballet company. He was in last year’s competition. He kept saying I should try it. I went to watch him in one of the finals. The show impressed me. It looked like a great experience.

“For me it would be a great opportunity to return to the wide range of dancing I had done until I was 15 – hip hop, lyrical, modern – I had spent years perfecting them all. So I auditioned. And it was everything it looks like – wonderful fun, always enjoyable, a great time. I like to have a good time and my friends said I’d hate it because you have to get up at 6am every day for classes, rehearsals and everything. Well, there wasn’t a single day I didn’t jump out of bed to do the show. Now you can’t drag me out of bed at 10am.

“As a dancer, it was challenging and great fun. I had never in my life danced tango or even worn tango shoes. Learning a new form of dance was fantastic. The choreographers were great. It was always interesting. But what made the experience so wonderful was the Israelis. Everyone was so nice and considerate of each other. It was all in Hebrew that went by really quickly. I really couldn’t understand anything. But whichever of the other competitors happened to be next to me would make the effort to translate every word. Also, I don’t drive. The others would go out of their way to pick me up and give me a ride. It was such a non-competitive atmosphere. I mean this was a competition. You would expect people to act competitively. Instead there was a kind of fellowship. It felt more like dancing with people who were my family. That made it a positive experience across the board.

“That’s how I feel about being in Israel in general – this family feeling. Yes, the show opened a lot of doors and helped me realize that I want a future in entertainment that will include dancing but not be exclusively dance. I was just accepted to the Look Talent Agency. I see myself acting, modeling but of course always dancing. But what was great for me about Nalad Lirkod (Born to Dance) was that before people assumed I was a tourist. Now people recognize me and know I live here. It makes me feel more connected, more like I’m part of Am Yisrael.”

I asked Lisa what she would say to other young people thinking about visiting Israel.

“I was never connected to where I was living and always felt something was missing. Now I feel whole and rooted. Israel is a special place and what makes it really incredible is the warmth of the people. I’d say come. Come to Israel; it will bring out a whole new side of you.”